More and more young people are dealing with mental struggles like feeling low, stressed or anxious. But only a small number get help in time. Maastricht University looked into what that means for the young people who first came to @ease. The results are concerning: their quality of life is much lower than that of their peers, and the cost to society is high, especially because of school dropout.
These findings come from the impact study by Sophie Leijdesdorff, Claudia Huijs, Rianne Klaassen, Arne Popma, Therese van Amelsvoort and Silvia Evers (2020). Their research, “Burden of mental health problems: quality of life and cost-of-illness in youth consulting Dutch walk-in youth health centres”, looked at the impact of mental struggles among young people visiting @ease. The key takeaway? Spotting signals early and offering easy-to-access support can help prevent lasting harm.
Why this research?
Mental health problems often begin young. Three-quarters of mental health conditions develop before the age of 24. The consequences can be significant, from declining participation in school to later problems with work and relationships.
Yet, the government worldwide allocates only a small portion of its healthcare budget to mental health. And young people often don’t seek help, due to shame, poor access, or simply not knowing where to turn.
The researchers therefore wanted to know:
- How big is the impact of mental health problems on young people who visit @ease?
- What does this mean for their quality of life?
- And what does it cost society?
How was the research done?
- Participants: 80 young people who visited @ease for the first time between January 2018 and May 2019
- Age: 12 to 25 years
- Measurements:
- Quality of life (via questionnaire EQ-5D-5L)
- School absences (number of days missed in the last 3 months)
- Use of care (visits to the general practitioner or mental health care provider)
- Cost calculation: what is the average cost of missed school days and care visits per young person?
The researchers used a so-called bottom-up method. This means they looked at the actual absenteeism and care use for each young person and translated this into costs.
What came out?
Low quality of life
The young people scored an average of 0.62 on a scale of 0 (poor) to 1 (completely healthy). By comparison, young people in the general population score between 0.91 and 0.96.
Their quality of life was therefore comparable to that of young people with severe depression. The domains of “activities of daily living and anxiety/depression” were particularly affected.
High truancy rate
More than half of the young people had missed school in the past three months, on average 4 full days per person. That’s a lot. For comparison: in the general population, only 11 to 13% ever miss even a single hour per month.
Costs to society
- Healthcare costs per young person: €103 in three months
- Costs due to truancy: €402 in three months
- Total: €512 per young person per quarter, or more than €2,000 per year
The largest part (80%) of the costs are therefore due to truancy.
Differences between groups
- Girls had higher health care costs and a lower quality of life than boys
- Non-Dutch speaking young people actually made less use of care
- Young people who lived alone were absent more days, thus incurring higher social costs
Why is this important?
The consequences of mental health issues are felt not only now, but also in the long term. Young people who frequently miss school are more likely to drop out or not graduate. This can lead to fewer job opportunities and financial problems later in life.
Moreover, three-quarters of these young people don’t receive professional help, despite their symptoms. As a result, problems persist and often worsen.
What do the researchers say?
According to Leijdesdorff and colleagues, this study clearly demonstrates that mental health problems in young people have significant consequences, both for themselves and for society. Their conclusion:
- Young people have a much lower quality of life than their peers
- The social costs are high, especially due to school dropouts
- There is a large gap between young people who need help and young people who actually receive care
The researchers emphasize that early intervention is crucial. The sooner young people receive appropriate help, the less likely it is that problems will develop into a lifelong burden.
What can we do with it?
This research shows that investing in accessible help like @ease can yield significant results:
- Young people feel heard and supported more quickly
- Problems are identified earlier
- There is a greater chance of preventing school dropouts and high social costs
Curious about all the results?
You can read the full scientific article here: “Burden of mental health problems: quality of life and cost-of-illness in youth consulting Dutch walk-in youth health centres.”
Do you have questions about our scientific research? Feel free to contact us, we’d be happy to tell you more.